Tips for Handling Dental Emergencies
By Beverly Van Engelen Brett
Reasonable precautions should always be taken, of course, to prevent any type of dental injury. This is simply a matter of common sense, such as wearing a helmet and mouth guard during risky activities, avoiding biting down on popcorn kernels, and not using teeth in place of tools such as bottle openers.
Even with the best precautions, dental emergencies and accidents do still happen. Rarely do they happen when your dentist is at the scene. Therefore, knowing what to do when an emergency arises can mean the difference between saving and losing a tooth.
The American Dental Association and U.S. University Schools of Dental and Oral Surgery agree that you should take the following measures in case of:
Bitten Lip or Tongue
Remember that soft oral tissue injuries usually do not bleed a lot, but when they do, the injury can seem worse than it really is. When the blood mixes with saliva, it may look like you are bleeding more than you really are. Dont panic because in most cases the bleeding will stop within a few minutes.
1. In the meantime rinse your mouth with warm water (mild salt water if it is available) to clean the area.
2. If the bleeding continues, press a damp piece of gauze against the injured area for 10 to 15 minutes. If you don't have gauze, you can use a clean piece of material that will soak up blood and saliva.
3. Use ice wrapped in clean cloth on the area to relieve pain, slow the bleeding, and keep swelling down.
4. If the bleeding doesn't stop within a few minutes, the injury may be serious and you will need to call your dentist right away. Hold pressure on the area until you can be treated.
Cracked Tooth
When a tooth cracks, you may or may not notice the damage right away. Minor tooth fractures may cause no symptoms. Deeper fractures may be very painful if the damage goes all the way to the nerve inside the tooth. Pain from fractures can also come and go, or it may be felt only when eating because chewing puts pressure on the tooth, widening the crevice.
1. There is no way to treat fractured teeth on your own. Call your dentist if you think you have cracked a tooth. Consistent pain in a tooth should be taken seriously, because it may mean that a fracture has damaged the nerve and living tissues inside the tooth.
2. If you are in doubt about whether you have cracked a tooth, a good rule of thumb is to call your dentist whenever one of your teeth becomes sensitive to hot or cold, or begins to hurt each time you eat.
Broken Tooth
When a piece of a tooth actually breaks off you should:
1. Call your dentist immediately.
2. Save the pieces. If it was a clean break, your dentist may be able to cement the tooth back together at least as a temporary measure.
3. Rinse your mouth well with warm water, watching for additional pieces of the tooth when you spit.
4. If you were able to save the pieces of the tooth, rinse them under running water over a closed container so you dont loose them.
5. If there is any bleeding, hold gauze or a piece of clean cloth on the area until the bleeding stops.
6. To help reduce swelling and relieve pain, apply a cold compress to the cheek or lips over the broken tooth.
7. Take an over-the-counter pain reliever if needed.
Knocked Out Tooth
The key to successfully saving a knocked out tooth is to act quickly.
1. Holding the tooth by the crown, rinse it off in milk or water if its dirty. Dont handle the tooth by the root end. Resist the urge to wipe it, scrub it, or pull off anything that might be an attached tissue fragment.
2. If at all possible, you should gently place the tooth back in the socket in your mouth and hold it there with your tongue and/or fingers until you get to the dentist. A child, or someone who has suffered other serious injuries, may not be able to keep the tooth in place without swallowing it.
3. Remember that it is critical to keep the tooth moist and if that cannot be done by holding it in place in the mouth, set the tooth in a glass of milk. As a last resort, use water and or saliva to keep the tooth moist.
4. Call and get to the dentist as quickly as possible. Dont forget to take the container holding the tooth with you!
Lost Filling or Crown
1. Save the crown, wrap it in tissue and put it into an envelope to keep it from being lost or broken.
2. Call the dentist. Even if you don't experience pain, the tooth has lost its support. Losing a filling or a crown leaves the tooth in a weakened state where pieces could start to chip off. Allowing that to happen could cause you to need even more dental treatment.
Toothache
1. Rinse your mouth with warm water (or warm salt water if available) to clean it out.
2. Gently floss around the painful tooth to make sure there is nothing lodged between teeth or under the gum.
3. You can take a pain reliever orally, but never hold Tylenol, aspirin, or any pain reliever against the gums around the area of the toothache because they can burn the gum tissue.
4. If the pain does not go away with the above steps, or if it returns persistently, then you should make an appointment with your dentist.
Keep in mind that its not normal to have oral pain. If you do, and youre not sure if you have an emergency, the best course of action is to call your dentist. This is because even when a dental problem seems small it could be affecting the living tissue inside the teeth. The more quickly you get in for treatment, the more likely you are to resolve your problem completely, and at the least expense.
Be prepared ... to save money at the dentist's office! Send your request for a complimentary brochure to brochure@4-health-benefits.com. Bev Van Engelen Brett has over 17 years experience working with patients as a health care technician, and now specializes in helping people obtain quality health and dental care at significant discounts. Visit her website http://www.4-health-benefits.com/ for details. If you wish to publish this article, it must be published in its entirety along with active links and this resource box.
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